Shloka 15

Karma-yoga Discipline for the Twice-born: Upanayana, Upavīta Conduct, Guru-veneration, and Alms-regimen

Devanagari script

धारयेद् बैल्वपालाशौ दण्डौ केशान्तकौ द्विजः / यज्ञार्हवृक्षजं वाथ सौम्यमव्रणमेव च

Transliteration

dhārayed bailvapālāśau daṇḍau keśāntakau dvijaḥ / yajñārhavṛkṣajaṃ vātha saumyamavraṇameva ca

Translation

على الطالب من ذوي الولادتين أن يحمل عصًا من خشب البيل أو البالاشا تبلغ إلى منتهى الشعر (قمة الرأس). أو يحمل عصًا من أي شجرة صالحة لليَجْنَا، لطيفة المنظر وخالية من العيب.

Word by Word

• dhārayet: should wear/hold
• dhārayet: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhṛ (धृ धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (विधिलिङ्, optative), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• bailva-pālāśau: (made of) bilva and palāśa
• bailva-pālāśau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bilva (प्रातिपदिक) + palāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā (2nd/द्वितीया), Dvivacana (द्विवचन); dvandva qualifying ‘daṇḍau’

• daṇḍau: two staffs
• daṇḍau: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Dvivacana; object of ‘dhārayet’

• keśānta-kau: reaching up to the hair-end (top of head)
• keśānta-kau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: keśānta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Dvivacana; tatpuruṣa ‘ending at the hair (topknot)’; viśeṣaṇa of ‘daṇḍau’

• dvijaḥ: the twice-born (brāhmaṇa)
• dvijaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; subject

• yajña-arha-vṛkṣa-jam: made from wood of a sacrificially fit tree
• yajña-arha-vṛkṣa-jam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yajña (प्रातिपदिक) + arha (प्रातिपदिक) + vṛkṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa ‘born from a tree fit for sacrifice’; qualifies implied ‘daṇḍam/daṇḍau’ (material)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: Vikalpa-avyaya (विकल्प)

• atha: then/also
• atha: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Anantara/ārambha-avyaya (अनन्तर/आरम्भ)

• saumyam: gentle, auspicious
• saumyam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saumya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of implied ‘daṇḍam’

• avraṇam: unwounded, without blemish
• avraṇam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: avraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of implied ‘daṇḍam’

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avadhāraṇa-avyaya (अवधारण/‘indeed/only’)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samuccaya-avyaya (समुच्चय/‘and’)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic instruction within the dharma-teaching section; traditionally transmitted by sages in the Kurma Purana frame)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: vira

Characters & Entities

• Dvija
• Brahmacārin
• Yajña

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

This verse is primarily a dharma-vidhi (rule of conduct) for the brahmacārin; it supports Self-realization indirectly by prescribing disciplined external symbols (the staff) that cultivate restraint, purity, and steadiness—conditions considered conducive to ātma-jñāna in the Purāṇic yoga-dharma framework.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No direct meditation technique is taught here; the verse emphasizes brahmacarya discipline and saṃskāra-based training. In Kurma Purana’s broader soteriology, such regulated conduct functions as preparatory sādhana—stabilizing the mind and senses before higher practices (including Pāśupata-oriented devotion and yogic concentration taught elsewhere).

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

It does not explicitly discuss Shiva–Vishnu unity; however, the shared Purāṇic synthesis appears in the broader text where dharma and yoga are presented as universal disciplines supporting devotion to Īśvara—whether approached through Vaiṣṇava or Śaiva idioms.